I’m a slow reader. I sometimes pluck a book from the shelf based not on whether its subject matter appeals to me, but whether or not it’s skinny or fat. So when I recently read Julia Otsaka’s 144-page When the Emperor Was Divine, I got the pleasure of not only finishing a book in a weekend, but also got a mini-course…
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You’ve dumped the clay on the table. You’ve sculpted it into a story, an essay, a memoir. You’ve reconsidered it and reworked it. You’re happy with it! Now it’s time to revise. We’ve all got to get through the next step, and I’ve collected some advice from writers who know a thing or two about revision. “When your story is…
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The beginning of your book, as much as the back cover or inside flap, is marketing copy. Your reader will give you wide latitude when it comes to your opening content, but if they’re going to stick around, they expect something enticing on the first page—a promise of things to come. Whether your first paragraphs strap your reader to a…
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Every writer was a beginner once, but the smart ones don’t stay there long. And by “smart” I simply mean the writers who are willing to immediately start putting together their personal writing tool kit and knowledge base. It’s easy, and therefore common, for writers to languish in the beginner stage. If you want to make progress and achieve some…
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In the first fiction workshop I ever took, our instructor said to us, “Do you know what the difference between a really good fiction writer and you is? They write better sentences.” I knew even then that there was more of a difference between those writers and us, but his words have always stuck with me, and ever since I’ve…
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